Saturday, 29 April 2017

I, like million of others, am a huge fan of Downton Abbey and have just started watching the entire six seasons from beginning to end a second time. As a romance writer who enjoys creating a whole cast of characters, this series is my idea of heaven on the small screen.

When I visited Highclere Castle (aka Downton Abbey) in 2015, it was one of my happiest days. The sun was shining, the castle was beautiful and the tour of the house was so inclusive, I really felt there was little the family kept away from the public which is always a pleasant surprise.

While there, I visited the gift shop and picked up two books written and signed by the current Countess of Carnarvon. The first of the books was Lady Almina & The Real Downton Abbey. As my to-be-read shelf is always overflowing it was only a couple of weeks ago that I sat down to start reading this biography.

And I wasn't disappointed.

Lady Almina was the 5th Countess of Carnarvon and the illegitimate daughter of banking tycoon, Alfred de Rothschild. When she married the 5th Earl of Carnarvon, she provided a huge dowry. Money that was desperately needed for updating and renovating the awesome castle. As the years passed into the WWI, Almina proved herself more than a cash injection when she was adamant she wanted the castle to be used as a hospital for returning wounded soldiers.

This book tells a fascinating tale of a time gone by and an even more fascinating woman - I thoroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end and will be picking up the next book, Lady Catherine and the Real Downton Abbey, very soon.